Listening to this show again brings me right back to 2nd row floor between Bob/Jerry. Phil’s bombs he came outta the gate throwing told us all to hold on for the ride. We’ll come down Sunday the 3rd in the Park. Spectacular time to live at 12th and Balboa in SF. Sweet sweet memories of friends long gone. Miss ya Uncle BoBo , Hammer

Quite the show From start to finish.
For Bill
Tom Thumb was there
Enjoy your spoonful
A dark star was shining
I will explore this territory in my journey

I was at this show, one of the best of over 50 I saw. Kesey, Standing on the Moon, Werewolves....and the energy/sadness of Bill just having passed....epic

This show is special to me as I was traveling the west coast with a friend that fall and had crossed paths with Phish at the Great American Music Hall a couple weeks earlier. We ended up helping the owners there and they said to go out and sell our tickets and we would be on the guest list. We ended up trading 2 phish tickets plus $25 for 2 Halloween Dead tickets. Win Win. Of course when heading towards Oakland, we heard on the radio about Bill Graham and new these were going to be intense shows. Yes they were and this one was the pinnacle with Kesey coming out and rapping. Minds were blown. Not to mention that many people were dressed up for the Holiday that it truly was, a night for the Dead.

Actually 12/28/91 could sneak in as well.
But this was the last Bruce show on the west coast and 91 they were pretty much hitting it out of the park night in and night out.
w the Kesey rap gave a glimpse into what the acid tests must have been like. What a night. What a run. fitting send off for Uncle Bobo finishing off the Sunshine Daydream in Golden Gate park on 11/3/91. OH! And to JamminJerome nothing to love about this show brah?? The Fucks wrong wit you?? Then again you listen to Keller Williams, kinda explains everything.

Great sound. Always like the shows with Gary Duncan in the lineup (12.10.89 being another great show with him up there). Phil comes out the door swinging with bombs dropping on Help and doesn't let up much the rest of the night. This is 1 of very few post Brent shows I'd rate 5 stars along with the 90 MSG run, NYE 90 and 3.20.92. Good stuff.

A very intimate show-- we all traded sidelong glances afterward. I guess you had to be there.

Great show, took the BART from SF where I had gone for the annual meeting of the National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges (no joke) and everyone else thought it was hip to be in SF for Halloween, but my wife and I had long since made plans to be in Oakland. What others aren't reporting however is that this was also the week of the terrible fires in the Oakland Hills that had killed something like 23 people, including the kid brother of a woman I worked with, a young cop trying to get people out. So as we made our way through the crowd there at the front of the Coliseum all the flags were at half staff and for a moment, it was unclear what tragedy was being recognized. In the same vein, Fire on the Mountain clearly went both ways as well. But it was of course Kesey, appearing out of nowhere in top hat and tails, that forever burnt the show in the minds of all who were there. We were on the seats, but close and maybe a third of the way up on the "Jerry side," from which Kesey spoke, close enough that I got a decent whiplash as he spat "Mr. Death!" But it was trauma that all but dissolved in Phil's amazing contribution to the Drums etc. that followed. (And in that regard, PLEASE check out and DOWNLOAD the Marcus Buick/Charlie Miller audience taping of the second set: incredible!)

Spaceship Oakland....need I say more....just after Bill Graham died and a show to remember....still recovering....may never recover....need to get back on that spaceship and see Jerry...we have some unfinished business....

I always thought Weir blew the 'just exactly perfect' opportunity to peak the week with a "Sunshine Daydream" following 'SOTM' instead of, IMO, an out of place "Throwin' Stones."

Worth it as a companion piece to the King Monster show of this run, 10/27/91...

Set 1 - the bookends of this set are worth it - H>S>F charges out there with a real headwind of energy....middle section of the set has nothing really of note going on, not until Let It Grow. This version is just...weird...not the tight-as-a-drum powerhouse for Jer's soloing it usually is, but a more ethereal, strung-out, dazzling creation at around 15 minutes long. Tempting to say it doesn't work, but there is so much going on here it will provide for many a listen for a while.

Set 2 - things perk up with Kesey's famed 'buffalo bill's defunct' speed-jazz explosion and Gary Duncan's guitar flavor - Drums > Space is particularly noteworthy here, with Duncan 'getting it' nicely....everything following the Beam is absolutely fine - solid usual standards for this era.

Can't share the five-star enthusiasm for this show, but I'll give it a respectable four - certainly all that Kesey stuff is worth it, a very emotional tribute to Bill Graham and, while breaking the fourth wall with caution, the Dead themselves.

hey now, i like 3/31/91, Nassau!! GREAT Lazy River Road to end the first set and a life-altering 2nd set opening Playin>UJB.

check it out!

I loved Brent and Jerry interplay, and missed it greatly and often was disappointed with the sounds from Vince. This show is the best I witnessed post Brent. Vince does a good job at staying out of the way, I'm sure some people will pass on this show because it doesn't have lighting fast Jerry on it. There is an energy to this show that is so unique and Phil is a beast here and on this entire run (check out him out on the Rider from the first nite). The Scarlet-Fire weighs a ton, the sound is heavy, thick and tasty. And yes, I stepped in a huge Puddle on the way in to the Phil-dome, but I know that goods and this is special. Thank you archive

Listening to this show is better than candy. My favorite Halloween show, my favorite show from '91. Next to 09/19/90 my 2nd favorite show from the 90's. OUTRAGEOUS,OUTSTANDING this is a 10 star show. The Kesey rap is cool but check out how the jam behind him builds into chaos. SIMPLY INCREDIBLE!!!! The Dead gave us a treat instead of a trick this night. HAPPY HALLOWS EVE!!!!!

This is great, a magic moment at a special time. Band just cooks.

this was the song that sent chills thru my body.
..during the dark star jam when everything turns evil and kesey quotes e.e.cummings and the
'HOW DO YOU LIKE YOUR BLUE EYED BOY NOW MR. DEATH!!!!!!!!!!!?'
talking about music that changes your life!!!

along with the august Cali run these shows were the beginning of my farewell to the boys. Everyone who went to all four of these great shows can honestly feel that they shared in a special moment in time with the band that made a living creating moments in time. I had a 2nd gen sbd of this for years and played that sucker dry. This night will forever haunt me.I stood four rows back and watch Kesey gyrate that inspired outburst and really couldnt appreciate the great accompaniment until the tapes arrived. Thanks for a verrry solid recording..i just got haunted again.

update- That solo Jerry plays on Throwin Stones is ridiculous...give it a listen. Might be the best one there is.

Apart from a somewhat obvious & clunky transition between Scarlet & Fire, this show is as close to perfection as any I have seen.

The beauty here is the musicality that underlies the spookiness. Vince was very subtle with his atmospheric synth work and didn't once tread on any leads. It was more than just harmony; more like suggestive highlights.

Please, if anyone can suggest a better show from the 91 tour, let me know. For me (a late 80's/early 90's deadhead), this is on par with Spring 89 and Oxford 88.

This show is flat out SICK. Jerry is pure humming. So many reviews under appreciate LOSER. Wish it went on for another 15 min. Opening Franklin>slipnot finds Jerry in those elevating knooks and crannys. Scarlet>fire one of the best I've ever heard. Sweet DS. The Kesey tribute, I sympathize with the loss we all experience, but how it is profound in any sense?... mere rambling that stems from pure emotion... even prattle that babbles. Standing on the moon.. more phenomenal Jerry; an excellent Throwing> Fade not and a great tribute to Billy Grahm. This is an amazing show. Five PLUS five!

Good Quality and strong vibes... HIGHly recomended. Nice Werewolves of Oakland. ^_^

that's the most beautiful scarlet begonias i think i've ever heard

I was standing on the floor about in the third or fourth row for this show, dead center. Watching the band perform was heart-breaking and beautiful. The sadness and shock of Bill Graham's death was written on their faces. At times that grief was channeled into a kind of dark intensity; at other times they seemed to be sleepwalking through the set. Kesey's poem was terrifying in its intensity. But the most powerful moment for me was the first notes of "Fire on the Mountain". Given that Graham's helecopter crashed and burned on the side of a Sonoma hill, the song was disturbing. But more disturbing was being close enough to the stage to see Jerry crying while he was singing the song. It saddens me just writing this.

This is one of the highlights of the 150+ shows I was lucky enough to attend. I joind this group specifically to say that the person who wrote the review before me has absolutely no idea what they are talking about. If you think this is an average show and there was nothing special about it then you obviously weren't there and you're most likely more than half deaf!

this is a pretty average show, when taken in context of the Dead's history. There's really not much to report. Every song is a pretty average version, the energy is there, but not very strong. The SBD is a little muddy in sections (to me, at least). I'm also not a fan of the spooky vibes shows.

I made it to 17 shows between 1990-1994, and I was at this one. Even as I was there taking in these incredible moments, I knew that this show would stand out as a highlight of my life forever! I remember thinking, "Of all the places I could be on the planet Earth at this moment, how did I ever get lucky enough to be HERE? Thank you to the Grateful Dead and all the G.D family for gracing my life with your presence! Now, for all the rest of you who sometimes get nostalgic for those "days gone by," just remember what Janice Joplin said: "Tomorrow never comes; it's all the same fucking day, man!"

i just got done burning one as well and started to play this show. i didnt move. i picked up a dead book and read about the boys while they sang to me. im only 22 years old. but the ds drums space/ keesey rap is just redankulious. and i totally agree. the rap gives you chils big time. i think keesey is crying actually. a must have for any dead head!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Thanks again archive for helping out the younger generation educate themselves with be good music
namaste

Wow...

That's all that comes to mind after listening to the entire Dark Star jam... Dark Star was awesome in and of itself, then coupled with Kesey's rant with was AWESUME and then, boom... one of the best space and drums I've _ever_ heard.

Total mind blower.

Heavy phil all night!!! my paents couldnt find a babysitter so I had the opertunity to enjoy the show. didnint understand the people around me untill i tried LSD for myself

first time i heard this show. i mean the first time i really heard this show was a rainy day, i was over a friends house. this kid had some amazing mushrooms so we decided to pick a random show with a good setlist and let dead do their work.
Well I felt like i lived and died my entire life and am now back living my second chance.
Kesey opened up my head pulled out my brain, mashed it around a little bit and then exposed me to the most intense elements any human being can experience. When he was done he up it back in and sent me on my way a different person.
as for the rest of the show. it gave me the typical holy shit feeling. like a freight train just ran me over, The second set had my brain cooking. I started coming down during not fade away. or so i thought. when werewolves started, jerry's vocals were the only thing keeping me on the ground. the sounds of the guitar licks were coming through in rays.

if you're a deadhead and havent listened to this show well then. LISTEN TO IT!!!! why havent you yet??



i reccomend you watch one flew over the cuckoo's nest while tripping

so many memories flooding back. backstage was buzzing with energy, everyone was getting pumped to load out the show so that we could move everything over to the park for Bill's free memorial show.

"Ahoooooooooooo! Warewolves of Oakland!"

i didn't sleep at all that week. Choi Boy, Reese, Bundy, Kilgore, Psycho Mikey - i miss you guys, what a great crew. we had one helluva time.

i'd done almost the entire tour that year..and let me say by the time the dead did these shows there playin level was at an all time high for this year...the 2nd set was magical...it really is a must have

This show was absolutely amazing.... I can not do justice as so many have written about this show.
What I can remember distictly is that during Scarlet>Fire I was on the floor and it was really hot (I was influenced my magic as well) and at one point the costumes were all too much and then I heard the sound of Jerry's first few licks of the Scarlet intro and things were soooo weird; if the person who was the witch with the broom stick and mask please identify yourself!-and remove your image from my cerebral cortex...seriously weird..I was not in costume. So unfortunate about BG but such great music here. The HSFranks in set one is not shab job either...slipknot will shred you a new a-hole! Crank it up! Someone was a big Chubaka and was dancing his ass off! I was like, 'okay, big ass chubaka is into the slipknot...make note to self...'chubaka dances like the hulk on acid. Great! Oh and he is dancing closer and closer to me...how cool!....that was the weird thing about this show; the costumes were so odd to be around.
The dark star is over the top pure jazzified psychidelic dead. The licks are sparse yet plentyful and, as Kesey once said about Garcia's licks, 'they slithered like snakes in and out of loosely stacked chords".

The 'let it grow' in set one also deserves mention as does the werewolves encore. This whole show is kind quality and better than the other one also posted here.

What a great memory...then those days in the park on 11/3 were such a blast...

One of my top ten. Gary Duncan's very distinctive guitar sound on the second set and one of my favorite Stars ever. First set is rock solid and second set is as awesome as you've heard. Kesey's words send a chill up my spine. My SBD tape was missing the drums->space and I am glad to have it. My first show was on my birthday on the 28th. That was a solid night, but man, if I had a choice back then, I would have waited. Fall '91 rules and this is the jewel in the crown.

The 2cd set alone gets 5 stars!!!!
i put on my headphones, and my head spins into the outter reaches of space from scarlet all the way thru to NFA. This show will leave you in total awe.
Inspiration move me brightly

this is one of the weirdest shows ive ever heard, and thats weird by dead standards! if the dark star > kesey jam > drums > space > dark star doesnt freak you out, then nothing will... like one of the other reviewers said, i had to turn the space off after a few minutes, not cause it was bad, but b/c my mind couldnt handle it any longer

if you dead thatll give u the shivers, this one is for you!

Not only had Kesey been struggling with the loss of Bill G, but one of his sons had also recently met an early grave. You can almost feel his rage. Unbelievable raw emotion. It is a pretty solid performance otherwise as well. In memory of Ken, "Your'e either on the bus, or your'e off?" An all around great show, and a disgustingly crips recording to boot.

This was the last really blow out of a show I ever saw. The Vista Cruiser was out that night! The energy level when Kesey took the stage was unreal. Lots of emotion with Bill Graham's death... This is a classic.

I just finished listening to this show after burning. I was blown away by the incredible sound of the recording and the equally incredible playing. The music is simply glorious. It almost brought tears to my eyes. Each song or group of songs is like an epic symphonic production. The overall sound of the band is HUGE, but you can still hear each instrument separately. The first set contains some OLD songs, but they are given a fantastic treatment. Jerry's scratchy voice gives them a world-weary touch. "Loser" sounds like advice from someone who has really been through the mill. Help>Franklin and Scarlet>Fire are wonderful. Bob's Rooster and Grow are equally good. A very nice surprise appearance from Phil on Tom Thumb. The second set including the long Dark Star/Space segment is very appropriate for Halloween night - some weird and scary stuff inside! The other songs at the end bring us back to earth - while Standing on the Moon!
The sound board is still available at nugets.net (that's where I got it) Download it while you still can!!!

The Kesey rap in the pre-Drums Dark Star jam is one of the most intense moments in GD history. If it doesn't give you chills, you're just not gettin' it. As Kesey says, Bill Graham got it. Thank you Bill.

I have listened several times to Kesey's "rant" as one review put it. This was shortly after the death of Bill Graham. My impression has always been that this was Kesey's eulogy to BG. He does get quite emotional about his old freind, especially when he recounts BG reaching out to Kesey when he lost his son.

Have a close listen. When I heard this I remembered the only New Year's show I have been to when one of my best freinds ran into Kesey and another ran into BG. This memory suddenly became very serendipitous to me. I remember being brought to tears by this. Kesey is so damned grand-eloquent.

Also, it is not a single guitar but the entire band jamming low behind him.

Kesey remarks, "This is what this shit is all about!" Yes it is, indeed.

this show contains the most amazing space segment ever......by far. I listened to this while tripping and it scared me to the point of having to leave the room.....no joke. The entire darkstar segment of this show is so emotional and intense. wortht the download alone......pretty good h>s>f to open but no 5/9. never got into 90s stuff till i stumbled on this....very nice jams with good well thought out phrases by jerry

Emotional day for some, especially Mr. Kesey.

Good example of the '91 sound complete with layered keys and light on bass. Also a typical set list for that year. Solid workman like run through of some well loved tunes. I don't like Gary Duncan's guitar that pops up in the 2nd set but I do like the Kesey lunacy during the Dark Star. Best word to describe is solid.

This is a 'must hear' for Kesey's beatnick dexedrine fueled rant alone and not sure who else is on guitar but this is great. LRR, Loser hot as well. Dark Star>Last time??? It's awesome.

fyi, kesey's rap includes the one literary reference (not the "various literary references" one reviewer mentioned) and that is e. e. cummings' poem "Buffalo Bill's".

This show was hot. What a weird strange day. All i can say is if you get confused listen to the music play.

some feel the last great run of shows especailly under less than festive circumstances. Not only is the kesey rap intense, but the jam that goes with it is extremely haunting. This is a must for anyone who considers themseleves a deadhead. Top Notch!

If you haven't heard the Kesey rant, you are missing one the most powerful GD moments ever (imho). The way the band follows him through his rant is cosmic.

The Kesey rap sent chills through everyone that night. Listen for the various literary references and you'll really get spooked. A close listen to the jam behind Kesey's spoken word reveals a startling resemblance to a few '73-74 era jams. The mood in the building that night was VERY different...everyone knew it was the end of era with Bill's passing. After the show I pulled into a gas station and standing there at the next pump was Kesey. I said "unbelievable rap there Kesey" and he was soo high he just looked at me with his pupils the size of pie-plates and this quivering smile on his face. He was blazing.

Download this show, turn down the lights and turn up the volume.

I have been looking for this set since I lost my tape of it 8 years ago. By far my all time favorite set. The throwin stones jam is insane! my favorite jam of the concert :-)

I like this show,
sound quality's great,
if youre thinkin bout downloadin',
dont think to hesitate.
Heavy on the Phil, nuff sed!
stellar stuff...

Hang on to the couch, or whereever your ass is smushed down. This second set is ....intense?... creepy?... Call it what you want , but this is a great show (imho). Keasy, as shamman, makes a few things clear for the people, and there's no way to ignore him.

(Not to compare this show to another, BUT, Oct. 26, 1989 has a similar vibe, so if you want another freak out session you might want to try it.)

Buffalo Bill's
defunct
who used to
ride a watersmooth-silver
stallion
and break onetwothreefourfive pigeonsjustlikethat
Jesus
he was a handsome man
and what i want to know is
how do you like your blueeyed boy
Mister Death

Without a doubt this is a gem. The second set sparkles all the way through with so many small haunting moments that its very fitting for a Halloween show. And yes, the 'Jam' after Dark Star is amazing. Kesey comes out and recites a poem and ad libs a bit but the band is ripping behind him, just amazing stuff.

My first show of about 30 was 9-30-88 and my last being 7-24-94. Of all the shows in between this period this show was my all time favorite. First set
was awesome. I was very close to the stage- on Phil side in the stands at the Coliseum.
Words cannot describe what an experience this show was. The parking lot scene was outta control with the freaky costumes. Near impossible to score a ticket if you didn't already have one.
Of all my shows I have the fondest memories of this one. I can still see the opening set and the band on stage in my mind.
Tragic as Bill's death was, I believe his death really brought out what the Dead were really all about. The first show of this run was sweet too. Very unexpected surprise to see Santana come out and jam on Iko.

As good as this show sounds, it was THAT much better live. Easily the spookiest Halloween I ever experienced with Kesey making such an unbelievable, albeit brief, performance. Energy & emotions were at a high with the passing of Bill Graham so close to these shows.... This show is worth the listen just for the Dark Star alone!!

I love the Ken Kesey rap in the jam during Dark Star. This was one of the 1st sbd's I ever got and it had a few drops in it. Glad to have a nice clean copy of the entire show. The Werewolves encore is almost an anticlimax to a great second set. The guest spot by Gary Duncan brings some extra life to the show.